“Hemingway’s behavior during his final years had been similar to that of his father before he killed himself; his father may have had hereditary hemochromatosis, whereby the excessive accumulation of iron in tissues culminates in mental and physical deterioration. Medical records made available in 1991 confirmed that Hemingway had been diagnosed with hemochromatosis in early 1961. His sister Ursula and his brother Leicester also killed themselves. Hemingway’s health was further complicated by heavy drinking throughout most of his life.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Hemingway
“Early diagnosis is vital, as the late effects of iron accumulation can be wholly prevented by periodic phlebotomies (by venesection) comparable in volume to blood donations.
“Phlebotomy (or bloodletting) is usually done at a weekly or each two weeks interval until ferritin levels are 50 μg/L or less. To prevent iron reaccumulation, subsequent phlebotomies are normally carried out about once every three to four months for males, and twice a year for females to keep the serum ferritin between 50 and 100 ug/L.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hereditary_haemochromatosis
I suppose Ernest said “I’d rather have a bottle in front of me than have a phlebotomy” or something akin to that.
My FIL had to have this treatment four times a year.
That is all we need to know about the man. Anything else is mere preamble. He was committing suicide his entire drinking career. The shotgun was incidental.